Once Upon A Time
by Rya Starling
Summary: Danny Fenton was a sad child, who grew into an even sadder teenager and in the end there was only a monster left. Entry for the DP Angst day


Ok i dont own Danny Phantom

This is my entry into Shiny's DP Angst day which has already passed, sorry bout the late entry...

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Once upon a time in a far away land, there lived a happy family who lived a very happy life in a beautiful city of Amity Park…

I'm sorry but I must interrupt this tale, for the nothing above is at all true at all. Indeed a family did live in Amity Park but they were neither happy nor beautiful. In fact they were the complete opposite. Thus I bring you to the true story of the Fenton Family.

The Fentons lived in a brick two story building in the city of Amity park, now this city was a nice place to live as a matter of fact it said so right on the billboard as you enter the city. However like all cities this one had its troubles, but it did not come from robbers, vandals or thieves in the night no this trouble was with ghosts.

Yes Ghosts, the city was filled with angry specters which attacked on a daily basis, it was considered normal to the people of this beautiful town to be attacked or scared half to death by ghosts.

Back to the Fenton family perhaps a bit of information on the Fenton family is in order.

First of all there is Jack Fenton the husband and father, often described by his wife as a big fat teddy bear. Jack was a very large man who was a brilliant man but absent minded. He was a ghost hunter and was obsessed with dominating over his nemeses and tearing apart ghosts molecule by molecule. He was a good husband and loved his wife and family.

Next was the wife Madeline Fenton she was a beautiful, vibrant woman who was devoted to her family but more devoted to her work. She was a brilliant woman, who apparently had it all brains, good looks, a six degree black belt and a beautiful family. Yet Maddie had a habit however of getting too involved in her work for she also was a ghost hunter.

Both parents had bad habits of forgetting everything else and focusing on there work.

Then there were the Fenton children, the oldest was Jasmine or Jazz as everyone called her. Jazz was the spitting Image of her mother and got her brains, beauty and body. She was a top honor student, very popular and loved and cherished by her parents. That is however Jasmine had a bad habit of prying into peoples business, poking, probing and peeling back the layers of a persons mind. Yes Jazz was without a doubt a person who hid her problems with her parents with psychology and books which she confided in rather then her parents.

Then there was the youngest Fenton Daniel. Danny was a pale boy, who was not very smart, nor did he posses his parent's brains or looks. In fact he was without a doubt very plain, unpopular and very unique none of the less. You see no matter how plain Danny looked or seemed to act like he was actually a very sad boy. His parents forgot his birthdays, but remembered his sisters. He was bullied, tormented and never got any good grades at school. Constantly he was nagged by his sister and Daniel hated it all.

Of course this was not the unique trait that Daniel possessed, oh no. You see Danny had a secret which he kept from his parents, sister and friends. Danny was a Halfa. Ah yes the mysterious halfa which ghosts all spoke of mostly not in good term. Danny went by Phantom when he flew about protecting the city of Amity Park from ghostly enemies and yet his parents were his worst enemies.

Yes Danny was without a doubt a hero who lived a very sad life. I of all people think it is very dramatic when a hero comes from a tragic background of tragic events. Yet Danny's family was once very happy that is. until Vlad Masters came into town and became the mayor of Amity Park.

Vlad Masters was a man who above all loved a few things in life. First was and above most all was money, yes Vlad masters could buy anything with money. Second was women yes he loved women, beautiful woman who thought Vladimir was a god for he was a handsome, rich man who like a devil trapped within the body of an angel. Third was the packers, Vlad loved his football and I showed in his home for he had an entire room devoted to his favorite team yet the town of green bay had yet agreed to sell them to him. Lastly fourth was the one thing Vlad could not attain with his wealth and that was Maddie Fenton. Yes he was to say the least obsessed with the wife of his college buddy.

Wait let me correct that; he was obsessed with the wife of his former college buddy. Vlad never forgave Jack for the day he ruined Vlad's life. Well at least that's the way Vlad sees it. You see one of Jack's inventions backfired and gave Vlad a horrible case of ecto-acme.

This is where Vlad came into Daniel's life; you see Vlad is also a halfa however his situation is much different then Daniel's. Vlad was a villain, and like humans he controlled ghosts by money, overpowering them, or even threatening them. Vlad was feared, while Daniel hated. Yes irony is somewhat cruel.

Amazingly enough the story starts when one of Danny's enemies finds out his duo identity. The villain was not a ghost, and not Vlad. It was Valerie Grey.

Valerie Grey was a smart, athletic girl who once was very popular. Overall she blames Phantom for ruining her life for it was his fault her father lost his job. It was Phantom who destroyed her possessions and it was Phantom whom was the reason she became a hunter. Valerie was as beautiful as she was deadly with her ghost hunting equipment and she was one of the first to find out Danny's secret.

The day was dismal to say the least, it had been raining for a week straight in Amity Park and spirits were dampened by the leaky school they were in on that Friday, not to mention the apparently wet weekend that was coming.

Poor Danny was especially down for today was his birthday he was now officially fifteen years old and no one seemed to care. It didn't change the usual routine of the day; he woke up late because his alarm clock had stopped working. Walking to school he got soaked because his umbrella blew away and a car splashed mud all over him. Then when he got to school finally Dash Baxter the local bully stuffed Danny into a locker after giving him a wedgy.

Paullina the schools beauty and most popular girl ignored him and even his friends seemed to be avoiding him today. That's is until Valerie Grey came over to get him out of the locker.

"Gah" Danny cried falling to the floor.

"I don't know why you put up with that" Valerie said and helped Danny up.

"It's ok" Danny sighed yawning loudly.

Danny looked awful to Valerie, dark circle under his eyes, hair more messy then usual and he was obviously loosing weight.

"Are you ok?" Valerie asked.

"Yea...why wouldn't I be ok?" Danny asked however Danny knew it wasn't alright.

After 2 nights straight of ghost fighting Danny was just about dead on his feet, no pun intended of course.

Valerie rubbed her chin, and became concerned. Danny was in her eyes a good kid; he was kinda cute too and was always nice to her. Even after loosing all her wealth and becoming a nobody Danny was nice to her and obviously had a crush on her. So Valerie took it upon herself to stalk Danny in a friendly way of course. However as the day ended Valerie followed him behind the school.

She watched as Danny walked behind the school, and saw him looking around rather cautiously. She was about to engage him in conversation when a blast came out of nowhere and nearly hit Danny.

Danny skillfully dodged and a large robot like ghost appeared from the sky, the cannon on its arm still smoking. Danny gasped this was skulker, he was a resident ghost who showed up nearly everyday and along with him that annoying Danny Phantom

"Stay still welp and I'll make your death swift" Skulker snapped.

"Uhh eww" Danny said, "and leave me alone I have enough problems without you showing up every two minutes yer almost as bad as the box ghost!"

"Don't compare me to that degenerate" Skulker snapped.

Valerie grabbed her book bag she had to protect Danny, wait..was Danny talking to that ghost. That's when she watched as two rings formed around Danny's waist. They ran up and down his body and began changing him. Her eyes opened wide as Danny's clothes were replaced by a black and white hazmat sit, turned his blue eyes green and his black raven hair to pure snow white.

The ghost hunter didn't know what to think and suddenly took a deep breath when she realized she hadn't been breathing. This couldn't be happening, Danny the boy who she had a crush had was Danny Phantom the ghost boy who she relentlessly hunted. No there had to be another explanation. Phantom was overshadowing Danny somehow or had done something to him.

She turned back around the corner and saw the two ghosts were gone.

Valerie took a deep breath, and then decided on what to do. Within the hour she found herself sitting at the Fenton table in Fenton Works. Maddie slowly served her some tea.

"Now what's all this about Valerie?" Maddie asked.

"Hey do you still have that cool ghost hunting outfit" Jack asked.

"Actually I..i came here about Danny" Valerie asked.

"What about Danny?" Maddie asked.

"I..I think he might be in trouble and since you guys are his parents and ghost experts I thought id come to you" She said.

Maddie Fenton and Jack Fenton looked at each other unsure of what to think of what the young woman was saying. Valerie was certainly a young but capable ghost hunter who without a doubt liked there son.

Ah poor Jack and Maddie such concern for there youngest son all of a sudden as Valerie wove her tale of what had happened at he school. Concern soon turned to rage and rage turned to there weapons. Yes the Fenton parents were very good parents and if anything or anyone specially a ghost threatened there family they were ready to charge towards the front lines armed. However you must realize that they are ghost hunters, and think like ghost hunters the idea that life and death could somehow co-exist in the body of a fifteen year boy who happened to be there son was ludicrous.

Young Daniel arrived home that afternoon; he felt no better the fight with skulker had worn him down to the point of exhaustion. Danny was ready to go upstairs, and collapse in his bed for a few days.

He opened the door, he found the place empty and silent which was to Danny odd. Usually his father was downstairs exploding some invention or working with a blowtorch in the living room while his mother helped or was busy in the kitchen cooking dinner for the family. Jazz wasn't home ether, maybe she was at the library. His parents were another matter; the RV was parked out in the driveway so they couldn't have gone anywhere.

"Mom, Dad?" Danny called into the silent home.

Hats when he heard a charge of a ecto-weapon which to Danny meant trouble, however poor Danny didn't have time to react as a net tied itself around him. Danny cried out as he tried to phase through the net but found out it wasn't possible.

Then the familiar shadows of his parents loomed over his tiny frame. If that feeling of impending doom has ever happened to you then you know Danny was feeling at the moment. The moment he realized his parent were aiming ectoblasters in his direction.

"What's going on?" He asked in pure confusion.

"Don't worry Danny we're going to help you" Jack said.

"You don't have about worry about Phantom ever again son" Maddie said.

"What!" He cried. "What are you talking about!!"

"They know everything" Valerie said coming from the shadows in her ghost hunting outfit. "You won't fool me ever again Phantom!!"

Danny's eyes widened suddenly, a feeling of dread came over him. His parents and Valerie knew his secret; they knew he was Danny Phantom. He began to panic and he didn't the only thing he could think of, he went ghost. Concentrating he unleashed a blast of energy from his body ripping the net apart. The blast threw back his parents and Valerie a bit.

Oh dear reader I wish I could you that Daniel's parents let there son explain his himself and they would have understood his plea. Yet that is not how this story goes I am very sad to say.

For seven days and seven nights they hunted Danny, and word soon spread to the people of Amity Park that the ghost boy was the small, fragile looking Danny Fenton. Some questioned the Fentons experiments, others who once showed Danny little compassion helped Danny hide, like Paullina who was in love with Phantom and Dash the local school bully whom Danny had saved on numerous occasions. Others however helped in the search and capture mission with the fentons.

Now after two weeks Vlad Master's who was on vacation in his Wisconsin home heard the news about Daniel. The news came from a desperate plea from Danny's sister who asked with a heavy heart and swallowing her pride if masters had seen her little brother.

Now despite what people thought of Vlad, he was concerned about the boy. Yet as always he saw a silver lining in this horrible situation yes, a lining which meant Danny would become his son. Oh poor Vlad, lonely Vlad whom sent out all the ghosts in his employment out to search for Daniel and bring him back to his home. Yet it was a ghost who was not on is pay roll which found Daniel.

Oh how complicated the mind of a writer is, and to him chapter one has ended and opened space for chapter two to begin. Oh he found Daniel lying there, broken and bloody. He slowly brought the boy home in the ghost zone. Ghost Writer yes that was his name; he had met Danny before however they had not left on good terms.

A lesson Danny learned, and a lesson the writer did also. Never try to rhythm the word Orange.

Danny opened his eyes slowly, and found himself lying on an expensive English poster bed with black silky sheets. The entire room looked like an old English kings chambers with the exception of a computer, and large bookshelf against it. A TV also was mounted on the wall with a VCR and DVD player below. The room smelled of lavender and inks an unfamiliar but almost exotic smell.

"Ah young boy I see you've awakened" A voice said.

Danny's eyes turned to see a sight he'd never before, the ghost writer wearing nothing but soft silk velvet colored robe, a glass of red wine held in his right hand as he devilishly swirled it. A relaxed look upon his face which was actually very charming.

"Ghost Writer" he gasped.

"Yes boy it is me and don't worry I only rhythm when I tell a story" Writer smirked. "Rest you need it, your human body was beaten badly. I have some food which I think you'll find enjoyable but mostly red wine and different types of cheese"

"Why?" Danny asked curious as to the motives of his apparently now former enemy.

"Ah why, a good question indeed perhaps it was a romantic irony" The ghost writer said. "I was always one to a dramatic chapter and it would seem that this is a new chapter in your life boy"

Daniel didn't answer for he didn't know what to say, to this unlikely of all hero's who possibly saved him from being found alone, bleeding and too weak to fight in the outskirts of amity park. So Danny stayed and an unusual thing happened to him. Danny began to feel something he'd never felt around the ghost writer. There last encounter to say the least was not the most pleasant of all things in fact Danny himself gained an annoyance for rhyming and a renewed spirit of giving at Christmas.

As Danny's wounds healed, his spirit also mended as he felt himself drawing closer to the ghost writer. They would spend the days reading stories, and the Writer explaining the tales of irony, romance and tragic love that he had stored within his vast library. He had books from romantic tales of shake spare to more current horror stories from the pen of Stephen king.

Oh poor Daniel's heart beated like a drum when he was near the writer, as they sat together in a dark leather coach reading the large collection of books. A year passed and soon rumors reached the ears of Vlad Masters about the ghost writer's apparent lover. Apparently he was a handsome white haired ghost, who was steely eyed and most importantly a halfa. Vlad didn't need to hear anything else.

He quickly made a visit to the ghost writer's manor.

When the knock came to the door, it was early in the mourning and Daniel was the first to awaken from his slumber. He yawned as she rose from sleeping on the chest of his lover, he was sixteen now a young man. He had let his hair grow slightly long enough to let it be tied back in a ponytail. He moaned as he heard the knocking, or rather banging at the door.

He rose from the bed, he dearly hoped it was not Walker again, nor any of his other enemies. He tossed on a silk black robe and walked towards the bedroom door.

"Mmm" the ghost writer said as he rose from the bed. "What is that infernal banging noise?"

'I'll take care of it you go back to sleep" Danny said and walked into the hall and down the main staircase and into the library which was the main entrance.

He opened the huge old English doors to see a familiar vampire like ghost standing in front of him. Daniel was surprised, as he saw Plasmius or rather Vlad Masters standing there.

"Daniel by god it is true" Vlad said as he floated there.

"Vlad what do you want?" Danny asked. "and what are you doing here?"

"I heard the ghost writer had a lover but I highly doubted it was you" He said. 'a fifteen year old boy"

"I'm sixteen" He said irritated by there mere presence of his arch foe.

"If you've come to drag me back to Amity Park I have no intention on every returning there" Danny said.

"No my dear boy I have not come to drag you back to your estranged parents" Vlad said groaned, "In fact there making my life miserable, Jack constantly nags at me for more money for his apparent research to protect the city from ghosts I could just order to go away"

"Funny they haven't figured it out yet" Danny said.

"No" Vlad said. "And I intend to keep it that way"

"I'm sure" Danny said. "Well it looks like you wasted a trip goodbye Plasmius"

"Now hold on a minute Daniel" Vlad said stopping the door before Danny had a chance to close it.

You see Vlad was not the only one who had connections inside the ghost zone, for Danny's old friends also had eyes and ears inside the ghost zone. These friends, whom were not present for Danny's horrible department from his family, and even more so were constantly watched by Danny's parents,.

First was Samantha Manson the environmental protecting, ultra reylco vegetarian, Goth girl. Strong, and with a sense of individualism so far unmatched by anyone, Sam was he brawn for the two friends. She also secretly harbored a passion for the white haired phantom who she called friend.

Then there was Tucker Foley the techno geek, apparently hopeless with woman boy. Smart by genius standers and with every possible electronic device's a weapon he was the brains of the two. Tucker was more likely to spend a day with his computer then with an actual person.

Or the last year these two were watched by Jack and Maddie, and helped secretly by Danny's sister Jazz. Oh such a sorrow Jazz felt for her brother, perhaps if she had somehow managed to help him this would have never happened.

When they heard the rumor of the ghost writers lover. So they decided to send a messenger. Ah yes the messenger, the term do not shoot the messenger would have been heeded in this chapter. Yet I am afraid the messenger is the one who should have followed the term thou shalt not kill.

The ghost was a nameless more of less, and like a shadow it stalked upon the bedroom of the ghost writer. The poor writer, such a woeful tale this would make for his beloved books. Books in which he cherished more then anything, not even as much as Danny.

Danny returned to the bedroom to dress himself, he didn't need Vlad seeing him in just a robe. Oh the dread he had within his blue eyes when he saw the blood splattered across the bedroom floor. His eyes darted to every inch of the room.

"Writer" He called in desperation, and then he smelled fire.

The fire blazed through the library, Vlad had rushed inside in a desperate attempt to find the foolish younger halfa. He found Daniel easily enough shouting out for the Ghost Writer who he was trying haul away from trying to pluck books from the walls.

"No I can't leave my book" The writer cried.

"Don't be an idiot come on..." Danny cried and Vlad hauled em from the area. "No let me go!! Writer!!"

The mansion blazed and as it did Danny watched and soon was broken into a sobbing state. In the end the books the Ghost Writer and Danny read often, were more precious to him then Daniel. Vlad watched as the fire raged, even if the ghost writer was dead there were ways to get rid of a ghost for good and one way was to destroy what connected hem to this world. In the ghost zone it was there home.

Vlad, who felt pity upon the boy, took him back to the human world. There Danny sat in room decorated in green and gold, and stared out of the window at seemingly nothing for an entire month. He would eat small amounts of food and wouldn't deny himself the daily bath or let himself drown in sadness to the point where he would try to take his own life.

No Vlad grew scared of the boy, not because he did not speak a word to him as he sat there in the room. It was because of his eyes, they were cold and steely no longer were they bright and innocent. Those eyes Vlad knew very well were the eyes of a man who was thinking, plotting, and all the while letting hate grow inside him.

Then one day he spoke to Vlad. It was in a tone however which chilled Vlad to the very chore.

"He told me this before I captured him" Danny said surprising Vlad as he sat in his study reading the mourning paper.

"Huh?" Vlad asked and was stunned; the boy was finally speaking, after a month of silence. "Daniel finally decided not to make the mute thing permanent huh? Well who are you speaking of?"

"I'm not sure..." Danny said. "Apparently he was me..but you at the same time"

If this had been a truly evil thing, a bolt of lightening would have crashed in the background. Yet in reality these things do not happen, you see it was a beautiful spring day outside. Birds chirping and teenagers roaming down the streets complaining about homework and boyfriends.

"Don't talk such ridiculous talk come my boy" Vlad said and stood up, "It's time you got out of the house, and perhaps a shopping trip for some clothes would be order"

"I wont be staying, I have decided to go and visit my parents one day and last time Vlad" Danny said his eyes gazing coldly upon them. "What you do with your life from now on doesn't concern me. Every attempt I have tried to make to begin anew has ended in tragedy. First I tried to be a hero and that ended with my parents trying to rip me apart like I was a monstrous creation. Then I tried to love and then ended with a broken heart. So I'm going to try to see if my parents have come to there senses"

Vlad blinked, was this the same boy he had once battled. The boy who with witty remarks would jabber on with him and call him names like idiot, fruit loop and old man. The same boy could barely control his powers none the less his emotions. No. This was a different boy…no a different man. The boy was gone and in its place was a young man.

Daniel then turned from him and walked out of his home. Amity Park had not changed much, aside from the ghost weapons now on display in shop windows and the ghost detectors that now framed every door. He smirked, what did a ghost need a door for? He could just turn invisible, phase through the wall and do whatever they need to do invisible. This must have been his father's ideas.

He stopped in front of a shop window and saw the array of ghost blasters. This must have been his mother's idea.

His first stop wasn't hard to find at all, Valerie Grey's the woman who had ruined his life because of her idiot ideals. He stopped in front her house, and looked inside through a window. Valerie had quiet a name for herself, she was the best known ghost hunter in town next to the fentons.

However Dannys eyes turned away from Valerie's window when he saw a little boy playing in front of the fireplace with a spaceship toy. A man was watching him as he and Valerie sat on the coach. Valerie was chuckling and carefully rubbing her large stomach. The man must her husband, Danny sighed they looked happy. He looked closer at the man and realized, it was Tucker. It was hard to recognize him without his trademark red cap and glasses.

He was about to leave when the boy caught a glimpse of him. He walked up to the window while his parents weren't looking and looked at the raven haired boy.

"Honey what are you looking at?" Valerie asked standing up with her coffee and then dropped her cup when she saw Danny standing outside of the window. She let out a screech.

"Valerie what's wrong. calm down!!" Tucker cried and looked at the window but Danny had already vanished.

Next Danny found Sam, however he found her in a very unlikely place the graveyard. His Samantha had committed suicide. Apparently her parents had forced her to marry a an whom she hated, and in one last final attempt to defy her parents she killed her husband, set fire to there house and then they found her in her greenhouse in the backyard. She had poisoned herself.

Danny sighed how, cliché but the fire part was a nice touch.

"What are you doing here?" A voice asked and he turned to see Sam's aging parents coming down the path.

There eyes opened wide as they saw him, and Danny disappeared, causing the mansons to scream.

Fenton Works hadn't changed at all, other then the fact there was a sign under the Fenton works arrow that read in flashing lights "Ghost Hunters HQ, ghost hunter trainee's wanted". He rolled his eyes, now they were training other idiots to fight ghosts also. He walked up to the door and calmly rang the doorbell.

The door was answered surprisingly by the tall blond jock whom use to bully Danny. Dash Baxter.

"Yea what do you want?" He asked. "Oh let me guess you wanna join up?"

"Join up?" Danny asked confused.

"Well yea may as well come on in" he said and literally hauled Danny inside. "Hey Jazz we got a recruit"

Jazz came out from the kitchen, she her hair tied back in a ponytail and wore a hazmat suit like her mother. Her eyes were busy looking at figures on some papers; she had taken it upon herself to balance out the ghost hunting budget for her parents.

"At this hour?" Jazz asked and looked up and dropped her papers and pen when she saw Danny standing there.

Danny smiled suddenly, teeth showing in a grin.\

"Hello Jazz" He said.

I wish I could say his family forgives him, I even wish I could say that Danny kept his demons within himself and left the family alone. However no Danny decided they had to pay, they had to feel the pain he felt.

First he dealt with his sister, the sister whom stood by and watched, done nothing as his parent's hunted em down like an animal. Dash ran from the house in terror, he would be found later hiding in his closet. Oh poor Jasmine's body was torn apart like a rag doll. Limbs scattered as if a child was hauling the arms of there dolls in rage and face twisted as if the face of a victim in a horror film.

Jack and Maddie were both next, they did most admirably put up a good fight. They fought with all they had, from hand held weapons to bazookas and hand to hand combat. Danny hands ripped, tore and blasted there fragile humans bodies.

"Danny" His mother pleaded with a trembling hand reaching up towards him in mercy.

Danny however caught her hand and then ripped it from her body.

Oh poor child covered in blood, huddled in a ball in the corner of the bloody lab, in this is where Vlad Masters found him. His eyes were narrowed and then he felt a sudden pity towards the boy who looked up to him. He uses to be such a sweet boy, and so gentle always wanting to do the right thing. This is why Masters took pity upon and then gave him a swift, quick death.

They say that even now when you past the remains of Fenton Works, you can still hear someone crying and rambling on madly. Sometimes you may even catch a glimpse of him standing in window looking out hoping someone would come and save him. No one goes there anymore, except for once a year old Vlad masters brings a rose to the steps, he stands there for a moment and then leaves.

That my friend is the sad story of Danny Fenton, I know you wished for a more happy ending towards this sad tale. Yet that is how it happened and this is how it had it be told. I wish I could have lied and made the story with smiles and sunset happy endings but in this tragedy I couldn't lie.

So love your children, even if they are different, or turn into a halfa suddenly for you never know when they may come back and take out there revenge.

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Please Review

Hope you enjoyed the one shot! Oh man it took forever to write, ohif you see any mistakes and such just tell me bout it and i'll fix it


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